UNIT 18 GERUNDS AND INFINITIVES

UNIT

18

UNIT GOALS

? Identify the functions of

gerunds and infinitives

in a sentence

? Use a variety of

gerund and infinitive

structures correctly

? Distinguish gerunds

from infinitives

? Use for with infinitives

and ¡¯s with gerunds

? Use gerunds as objects

of prepositions and

phrasal verbs

330

UNIT 18

GERUNDS AND

INFINITIVES

OPENING TASK

Skills and Qualifications

You and a partner have been asked to consider the strengths and

weaknesses of the following ten applicants described on the next

page for ¡°Altacreat,¡± an artistic community in the northwestern

United States designed to provide artistic space for ten artists in

residence for periods of up to three months. Specially designed

studios inspire ¡°cutting-edge¡± artistic creations and common

eating, and conversation spaces provide contexts for global

intellectual exchange after the day¡¯s work is done.

Altacreat has individual apartments and studios for each

artist, all room and board paid for by scholarships, a library, a

computer center, and communications facilities for all artists, the

capability to receive international newspapers, mail, and television

broadcasts, 24-hour computer access, and interactions with the

public through on-site visits by local schools and businesses.

STEP 1

In pairs, jot down ideas about why you think each person in the chart that follows might like to

be a candidate. Think about why he or she would want to be part of the center and what positive

skills or characteristics he or she could bring. The first one has been done as an example.

CANDIDATE

RATIONALE

Composer: Female, wife of architect, Korean, 25 years old

Specialization: classical piano

Playing the piano could entertain and inspire

the other artists to design better creations.

She might also want to co-design with her

husband (if he is also selected) modern piano

studios for home and commercial use.

Architect: Male, husband of piano composer, Japanese,

35 years old

Specialization: modern styles mixed with very traditional

Novelist: Female, Hungarian, 40 years old, married, expects to

have a baby in one month

Specialization: novels about gypsies in Europe

Opera Singer: Female, Russian, 32 years old, single

Specialization: dramatic, passionate roles in Italian operas

Screenplay Writer: Female, wife of filmmaker, 39 years old,

American (U.S.)

Specialization: detective mysteries

Filmmaker: Male, husband of screenplay writer, 60 years old,

Mexican

Specialization: love stories

Poet: Male, 28 years old, Vietnamese, widowed

Specialization: effects of technology on everyday life

Landscape Architect: Female, 23 years old, Brazilian, single

Specialization: sunken gardens

Artist: Female, 36 years old, Turkish, married

Specialization: geometric mosaics

Digital Artist: Female, 28 years old, Chinese, single

Specialization: collecting photos from Webcams and arranging

them in displays

STEP 2

Share the results of your brainstorming with your classmates.

GERUNDS AND INFINITIVES

331

form

FOCUS 1

Overview of Gerunds and Infinitives

EXAMPLES

(a) Speaking English is fun.

(b) To compose a sonata would take months.

(c) It would take months to compose a

sonata.

332

EXPLANATIONS

Infinitives (to + verb) or gerunds (verb + -ing)

can have various functions in a sentence:

Subject: Gerunds and infinitives can function

as subjects. However, it is more common for

infinitives that are subjects to move to the end

of the sentence with it as the new subject.

(d) His dream was to direct the ultimate

Mexican love story.

(e) Her hobby is weaving baskets.

Subject Complement: A subject complement

follows be and refers back to the subject of the

sentence.

(f ) I don¡¯t understand the need to take a

ten-minute break.

(g) The instruction to wear safety goggles

has saved many people¡¯s eyes.

Noun Complement: Noun complements explain

the nouns that they refer to. The infinitive can

be a complement to certain abstract nouns (for

example, advice, decision, desire, fact, opportunity,

order, plan, possibility, proposal, request, refusal,

requirement, suggestion, way, wish). (See Unit 21,

Focus 1, for a more extensive list of abstract

nouns.)

(h) I am sorry to inform you of the delay.

(i) They were pleased to meet you.

Adjective Complement: Certain adjectives can be

followed by infinitives. These include:

afraid

disappointed

pleased

amazed

eager

proud

anxious

eligible

ready

apt

(un)fit

reluctant

ashamed

fortunate

sad

bound

glad

shocked

careful

happy

sorry

certain

hesitant

sure

content

liable

surprised

delighted

likely

upset

determined

(j) Paco hopes to see the play.

(k) Carol remembered mailing the package.

Direct Object: A direct object follows a verb.

Depending upon the verb and accompanying

meaning, the object may be an infinitive or a

gerund.

(l) By studying hard, you can enter a

good school.

(m) Thank you for helping me.

(n) NOT: He lost the deal because of wait

too long.

Object of Preposition: Gerunds, not infinitives,

are objects of prepositions.

UNIT 18

EXERCISE 1

Read the following text and underline all gerunds and infinitives. Then identify the

function of each one (subject, subject complement, noun complement, adjective

complement, direct object, or object of preposition).

(1) Alan Loy McGinnis in his book Bringing Out the Best in People (Augsburg

Publishing House, Minneapolis, 1985) describes 12 important principles or rules for

helping people to perform to the best of their ability. (2) The first rule is to expect the

best from the people you lead. (3) A true leader needs to drop the role of ¡°watch-dog¡±

and to display a positive attitude toward everyone who works under him or her. (4) The

second principle is to make a thorough study of the other person¡¯s needs. (5) Walking a

mile in another person¡¯s shoes will allow a leader to truly understand someone he or

she is working with. (6) The third rule is to establish high standards of excellence.

(7) Many people have never learned the pleasure of setting high standards and living

up to them. (8) The fourth rule is to create an environment where failure is not fatal.

(9) People who expect to succeed all of the time often cannot rise from a failure.

(10) An effective motivator needs to know how to help people deal with their failure.

(11) ¡°Climbing on other people¡¯s bandwagons¡± is the fifth principle that McGinnis

suggests. (12) A good leader needs to identify the beliefs and causes of the people that

he or she works with. (13) By using these good ideas, he or she can encourage them

to pursue as many of these goals as possible. (14) Employing models to encourage

success is the sixth rule. (15) Everyone loves hearing about true success stories of

others to build confidence and motivation. Recognizing and applauding achievement is

the seventh rule. (16) A good leader tries to look for strengths in people and catch them

¡°doing something right¡± so that he or she can compliment them.

(17) The eighth rule is to employ a mixture of positive and negative reinforcement.

(18) Using praise is only one of many methods used to motivate. (19) Sometimes a

person does his or her best because he or she is afraid to be punished. (20) The ninth and

tenth rules relate to appealing sparingly to the competitive urge and placing a premium

on collaboration. (21) Some competition is good; however, the decision to work with

other people creates good morale and allows the job to be completed more efficiently.

(22) The eleventh principle is to learn how to deal with troublemakers in a group.

(23) A leader who does not learn how to handle a problematic person will never learn

how to stay in difficult situations and solve them. (24) Finally, the twelfth rule is to find

ways to keep the motivation of the leader, himself or herself, high. (25) Renewing oneself

through sports, reading, going to a restful spot, etc. are all necessary for the good leader

to become energized and to successfully perform the other eleven principles.

Which functions of gerunds and infinitives are most common in this selection? Is the

¡°to-verb¡± structure always a complement? What other meaning can it have? (Hint:

Review sentences 15 and 18.)

GERUNDS AND INFINITIVES

333

form

FOCUS 2

Infinitives and Gerunds in

Perfective, Progressive, and Passive

EXAMPLES

EXPLANATIONS

(a) Eva¡¯s plan has always been to return to

her homeland.

simple infinitive

(to + verb)

(b) She hoped to have earned an Olympic

gold medal by the time she was 20.

perfective infinitive

(to + have + past participle)

(c) Their goal is to be working by March.

progressive infinitive

(to + be + present participle)

(d) We wanted to have been swimming

by now.

perfective progressive infinitive

(to + have + been + present participle)

(e) The suggestion to be seen by a surgeon

was never followed.

passive infinitive

(to + be + past participle)

(f ) They were happy to have been chosen

for the award.

perfective passive infinitive

(to + have + been + past participle)

(g) Part of the problem is not knowing

enough.

simple gerund

(verb + -ing)

(h) She was excited about having watched

the race from start to finish.

perfective gerund

(having + past participle)

(i) Being appointed to the board of

directors is a great responsibility.

passive gerund

(being + past participle)

(j) Having been selected for the experiment

gave her career a boost.

perfective passive gerund

(having been + past participle)

EXERCISE 2

With a partner, discuss the following topics using infinitives and gerunds. Use the

appropriate simple, perfective, progressive, or passive form and give reasons for your

response for each item.

Example: a movie you enjoyed seeing

I enjoyed seeing ¡°Star Wars I¡± because I like science fiction.

1. a holiday food you like to eat

2. a present you would like to be surprised with

334

UNIT 18

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